Stephanie Hafferty: The benefits of spending time outdoors

DO YOU THINK BEING OUTSIDE AND SPENDING TIME IN THE NATURAL WORLD HAS POSITIVE BENEFITS?

Yes, it does. Predominantly for exercise, as you are using the whole of your body, getting into different positions to garden.

It also improves your health and mood, making you more cheerful. Even though a day may seem gloomy, the light levels are higher than you think and if you spend more time outdoors it can lift your mood. It can make you feel less likely to become ill and boost your immune system.

Even if the weather doesn’t look inviting, it is worth going outdoors even for 15 minutes, as you can become more cheerful and optimistic.

WHY DO YOU THINK IT IS IMPORTANT TO SPEND TIME OUTDOORS WITH YOUR LOVED ONES?

When the children were little, spending time outdoors was something that we did every day. The children had and still have a connection with the outdoors that they developed from when they were young.

When you are outside with others, conversations flow and it encourages people to talk more freely and have conversations that they wouldn’t normally have.

The outdoors is very calming and relaxing. Green is a relaxing colour, and this accompanied with the background noises of the birds, bees, wind and so on, triggers those conversations that you wouldn’t usually have in a constrained indoor environment.

DO YOU THINK THAT GARDENING IS KEY TO HEALTHY LIVING?

Gardening is definitely an important part of healthy living. For some people, they don’t understand, and it doesn’t work for them, but even just taking a walk around a park is key and can keep you healthy.

Gardening is meditative and relaxing, it helps with problem solving and gives you a sense of order in a chaotic world. It makes you feel better.

You can also create something that’s beautiful and beneficial. Plants can host so many different creatures.

ARE THERE ANY OTHER WAYS WE CAN BENEFIT FROM THE NATURAL WORLD OTHER THAN GARDENING?

Even just sitting in the garden can be a good opportunity to get away from daily tasks and give you space and time to relax. I am a strong believer in the importance of getting outside and spending time surrounded by fresh air.

CAN YOU EXPLAIN TO ME WHAT NO DIG METHODS ARE? WHY ARE THEY BENEFICIAL?

No dig is the best way in my opinion. It works in balance with nature and soil. By putting a small amount of compost on top of the soil, this not only feeds the soil but feeds the plants for a whole year. Meaning you have to put a lot less work in.

No dig reduces the number of weeds that grow because the soil is not turned over, which exposes annual weed seeds that then germinate. We hoe the beds to prevent weed seeds that are blown onto the plot from establishing.

If you dig the soil, you kill fungi known as mycorrhizae, which connects with the plants and improves the way they absorb nutrition and encourages better growth. We don’t use any fertilisers, there are not as many pests and there is little habitat for slugs and so on, using no dig methods.

No dig is becoming increasingly accepted as an idea. It is extremely beneficial to those who have ailments (back problems, arthritis) and who cannot dig. Older people who thought they might have to give up gardening, now don’t have to.

DO YOU THINK THAT HOMEGROWN FOOD IS SOMETHING THAT PEOPLE SHOULD CONSIDER?

Home growing your own food is over-complicated by the media and there are a lot of myths about acidity of soil etc. We grow all vegetables (apart from a few exceptions that need special soil).

Even if you don’t have a garden there are things you can do. Join a community garden or even grow herbs or salads on your windowsill, therefore you are getting fresh homegrown greens at no extra cost.

If you use no dig methods, then there is less work and things are easier to do, meaning that you will have more time to grow and harvest your own food.

DO YOU HAVE ANY ADVICE FOR PASSIONATE HOME GARDENERS OUT THERE?

You have to decide what you like eating most and what would taste better fresh. For example, sweetcorn, purple stem broccoli and white aubergine all taste wonderful fresh.

You have to find things that add a bit of ‘ooph’ to your cooking, such as multi-coloured carrots, herbs, edible flowers and so on. For example, I use a lot of Calendula, which is a beautiful orange and yellow colour and is completely edible. You can pull the petals off and use them in salad, make tea with them, dry them out and put them in rice or even put in oil or vinegar to make Calendula-flavoured products.

Violas are also my favourite. They look like tiny pansies and are known as heartsease. In A Midsummer Nights Dream, one of the characters, Puck, uses them. In the play, he calls them ‘love in idleness’.

If you would like to find out more, please visit www.stephaniehafferty.co.uk